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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22677298">Blake Belladonna and the Quest For Caffeine</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiiratam/pseuds/Kiiratam'>Kiiratam</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>RWBY</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Canon Compliant, Comfort, F/F, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Wingwoman Coco, it's fluff but it's fluff where Blake has to fight herself a bit to get to the fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 18:40:07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,862</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22677298</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiiratam/pseuds/Kiiratam</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Blake is trying to do something for Yang.</p><p>Takes place between Volumes 2 and 3. (<a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/19983040">My BMBLB fic index</a>)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>127</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Blake Belladonna and the Quest For Caffeine</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>I am the worst friend.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Sprawled on her bed, Blake stared at her book. Wanting to blame it for her realization. She wasn't sure if Rex and Rafe were meant to be read as a couple or not - they were really just background characters. But just the way they worked together on the ship, supporting each other, not afraid to ask each other for help - it filled Captain Josephine with pride. And Blake with the realization that she was just take, take, take.</p><p><br/>
<em>Breathe in, hold it, breathe out.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Blake closed her eyes and pressed her forehead to the pages. It wasn't that bad. She pulled her weight in RWBY, she was tutoring other students, she was practically running a lending library of books that were too racy for the Beacon library...</p><p><br/>
And she kept making Yang deal with her problems. Just dumping all of them on her, and expecting her to be able to deal, even if Blake didn't explain a word.</p><p><br/>
<em>I can't deal with them. Not alone. I can't keep everything just bottled up again.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>It's not fair to Yang.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>I can't.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>Breathe in, hold it, breathe out.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>I need to be a better friend. Try to help Yang, like she helps me.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>With what? I've only got two skillsets, and we already fight side by side and it isn't <strong>enough</strong>! Which just leaves-</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>Breathe in, hold it, breathe out.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>No. I'm more than what Adam made me do. </em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>So what, I'm just supposed to wait around, and hope Yang needs errands run, or help with her homework, or something?</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>Yes.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>That's dumb. I'm dumb.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>Breathe in</em> - Blake opened her eyes - <em>hold it</em> - flipped back a page - <em>breathe out</em> - and reread a line.</p><p> </p>
<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>"Whenever you're ready, Rafe!" Rex clapped his meaty hands together and held them a pace apart, waiting for his shipmate to toss him the line.</p>
</blockquote><p> </p><p>
  <em>It's not dumb. I'm not dumb. </em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>It's just not going to be instantaneous. It'll be actual work, waiting to help Yang.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Blake looked up from her book, hearing... groaning? from outside their room.</p><p><br/>
The door opened, and Yang staggered in. Still groaning, practically dragging her bookbag.</p><p><br/>
<em>I'm never this lucky.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Leaving her book open, Blake rolled out of bed. "Yang?"</p><p><br/>
Shaking her head to clear it - sending her glorious hair bouncing around - Yang flopped against her desk. "So. Tired. So much to do."</p><p><br/>
<em>Something is going to wrong. Something is <strong>absolutely</strong> going to go wrong.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Swallowing, Blake forced the words out. "Can... I help?"</p><p><br/>
With a heave, Yang managed to get her bookbag on her desk. Slid off of her desk to her chair, which had Blake covering half the distance between them because she didn't think Yang could make the transition and even when she did, it still looked like it hurt. "Can't write Oobleck's essay for me. Or Goodwitch's. Or Port's. Or - there's another. Can't remember."</p><p><br/>
Another groan, and Yang started to crumple forward - which <em>did</em> have Blake dashing forward, and grabbing Yang's shoulder to hold her up, and throwing the other around in front of Yang's face, trying to keep her from slamming it into her desk -</p><p><br/>
Yang settled her face into the crook of Blake's elbow, leaning into it with dead weight. Making a soft, contented noise. "Cozy."</p><p><br/>
Blake was absolutely not prepared to deal with this. At all. It took her a few tries, but she managed, finally, to ask, "Can I get you a coffee? Or pop? Caffeine, sugar? Anything?"</p><p><br/>
<em>Even if I want to just stay like this. Yang has things to do. I can't get in her way.</em>
</p><p><br/>
Planting her hands on the edge of the desk, Yang managed to force herself fully upright again. And promptly leaned her head back, looking up at Blake. "Please."</p><p><br/>
"Which one?" Blake kept her hand on Yang's shoulder, squeezing, trying to send through as much reassurance as she could. Tucking Yang's hair back behind her ears with the other.</p><p><br/>
Yang made a particular full-body shudder that Blake recognized from her own fatigue. Despite her drooping eyelids, she was trying to keep her gaze locked on Blake. "Literally anything."</p><p><br/>
"Okay." Moving her hands to Yang's temples, she re-positioned her friend's head, making her look at her desk. "I'll be right back; you just get started."</p><p><br/>
Giving her a thumbs-up, Yang started the laborious process of getting her textbooks out of her bookbag.</p><p><br/>
Blake slipped out the still-open door, and closed it with a quiet click.</p><p><br/>
And took off running towards the common room.</p><p><br/>
She nearly ran Cardin and the rest of CRDL down, but they <strong>were</strong> a pretty substantial wall of meat, so she'd just left an exasperated-looking clone in front of them and jumped through, keeping her pace.</p><p><br/>
With their cries still sounding behind her, she caught the edge of the doorway and hooked herself into the common room, grabbing onto the refrigerator handle and skidding to a stop. Took a breath and assessed the situation. No coffee in the pot, no communal sugar out - but Ruby and Velvet were baking away. With a lot of sugar, and a cutting board stained orange, and-</p><p><br/>
"Belladonna, where's the fire?" Coco sitting at the island, looking as perfect as always, even in her Beacon uniform. Had she had it tailored?</p><p><br/>
Blake shook her head. "Yang. Desperate need for sugar. Or caffeine. Or both."</p><p><br/>
Coco nodded at the cooking chaos behind her. "They're making carrot cake, but I think it's still going to be a bit."</p><p><br/>
"Not that long!" Ruby yelled over her shoulder. "But <em>someone</em> keeps eating my ingredients!"</p><p><br/>
Shaking her head, Coco said, "Go ahead and grab one of my cold brews from the fridge."</p><p><br/>
<em>Um. The cold brews that Nora had taken one of, and then Velvet had literally delivered a note from Coco demanding satisfaction, and they'd had a duel in the early morning mists, with Glynda overseeing it, and Nora got her butt kicked? Those cold brews?</em>
</p><p><br/>
Her face must have given something away, because Coco gave her a wicked looking smile, "Don't worry. I'm going shopping tonight."</p><p><br/>
"Um. Thanks."</p><p><br/>
Coco shrugged. "This entire bet between Velvet and Ruby has turned into a farce. I'm just trying to level the scales."</p><p><br/>
Grabbing a handful of measuring spoons from a drawer nearby, Velvet got an apologetic look on her face. "I felt bad just sitting and watching Ruby bake."</p><p><br/>
Coco adjusted her shades. "Velvet, you won the race. Why bet dessert if you weren't also going to get some gloating in?"</p><p><br/>
"Kiiiiiiinda need that tablespoon, Velvet."</p><p><br/>
"Right!" Velvet leapt back into the fray.</p><p><br/>
Refocusing on Blake, Coco made a shooing motion. "Go on, get back to Yang."</p><p><br/>
Blake was still suspicious. Coco was absolutely <em>incredibly</em> cool, but she was also... normally not this nice. Not that she was rude, or unprofessional, or anything like that - just more distant. Untouchable.</p><p><br/>
But Yang, caffeine, now, and Blake would take the morning duel if Coco was just being ironic or something. She opened the fridge, and grabbed one of Coco's cold brews.</p><p><br/>
"Hey, Belladonna. Catch."</p><p><br/>
Blake caught the small box Coco had tossed her. She had no idea where Coco had gotten it - her purse wasn't anywhere nearby. But Blake smelled... chocolate? ...Really good chocolate.</p><p><br/>
"If Yang needs a sugar rush, do it right."</p><p><br/>
Really, <strong>deeply</strong> suspicious.</p><p><br/>
"Oh, oh!" Ruby dashed over to her in a cloud of rose petals. "Yang can lick the frosting spoon!" She held it out - not quite dripping, but perilously close. </p><p><br/>
"We haven't frosted the cake yet!" Velvet called after her.</p><p><br/>
Ruby looked back over her shoulder at her friend. "But it's a sugar emergency, Velvet! We have more spoons!"</p><p><br/>
Chuckling, Coco said, "And you're doing dishes, Rose."</p><p><br/>
Shifting the cold brew and box to an awkward grip in one hand, Blake took the spoon, trying to angle it so the almost-drip wouldn't fall. Looked at everyone else, smiling. "Thanks. A Lot."</p><p><br/>
Blake made the return at a more sedate pace - mainly because of the spoon and that worrying not-quite-but-it-was-trying-really-hard-drip. She suspected Ruby had laden it with some extra frosting.</p><p><br/>
And the door was closed. </p><p><br/>
Sighing, Blake set the box and bottle down on the floor, freeing her hand, turning the doorknob, pushing the door open, picking everything <em>back</em> up, and walking in.</p><p><br/>
Yang was still at her desk. Still upright. Hands bookmarking pages in two different books. Eyes closed. Definitely not awake.</p><p><br/>
Giving in to a mischievous impulse, Blake pressed the cold bottle against the back of Yang's neck.</p><p><br/>
"Aaah!" She didn't quite fall out of her chair and onto the floor, but it was near thing. Once she stopped flailing, she looked back at Blake with the wide eyes of the suddenly awakened.</p><p><br/>
Smiling, Blake held out the cold brew. "Got you this." And when Yang looked at it, then back at Blake, eyes somehow even bigger, Blake added, "I asked first."</p><p><br/>
Yang took it, and popped the cap, took a long drink. Shivering as the caffeine soaked in, eyes closed.</p><p><br/>
When she'd recovered enough to open her eyes, Blake held out the spoon. "And your sister sends her love and frosting."</p><p><br/>
Yang grinned, taking the spoon, and licking off the almost-drip that had been bedeviling Blake. Making a noise that just made Blake's knees suddenly, inexplicably, weak, and her senses unfocused because all she could do was replay her new, most treasured memory in her head, everything fuzzing out but the noise and Yang's mouth-</p><p><br/>
"Blake?"</p><p><br/>
"What?" Blake tore herself back to reality.</p><p><br/>
"I asked if Ruby was making carrot cake. Since it's cream cheese frosting."</p><p><br/>
"Oh. Yeah. With Velvet."</p><p><br/>
Yang nodded, taking another lick and - Blake wondered if time was going to slow down every time. She really hoped so.</p><p><br/>
"And, uh, once you finish that-" Blake set the small box of chocolate down on the desk. "I think Coco may like you or something, because she also gave me that."</p><p><br/>
<em>And I really hate to say that because Coco gets what she wants, and she's so perfect, and I can't not tell you, because who wouldn't want Coco to be interested in her-</em>
</p><p><br/>
Yang grinned. "Everyone likes me." And punctuated her statement with another lick.</p><p><br/>
<em>Which is true. But-</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>I like you. And I want you to know that.</em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>So no secrets. </em>
</p><p><br/>
<em>Breathe in, hold it, breathe out.</em>
</p><p><br/>
"Did you need any help with your essays?"</p><p><br/>
"I just need to pound out Port's and Goodwitch's. But I could use a hand on Oobleck's - I have some ideas, but I want to throw them at you and see if any of them have legs."</p><p><br/>
Blake smiled. "Muddling your metaphors a bit, Yang."</p><p><br/>
And Yang smiled back like it was daybreak. "And if you could proofread my essays and catch all those, that would really help too."</p><p><br/>
"Can do. Ruby's carrot cake might be done by then."</p><p><br/>
Yang gave her another thumbs-up and licked the last of the frosting off. Blake wasn't sure if her knees would have time to recover between now and then, but if she had to crawl to the common room to get Yang carrot cake, she'd do it.</p><p><br/>
"Thanks, Blake."</p><p><br/>
"Anytime."</p><p><br/>
<em>I mean it. I'll help you however I can. Just like you help me.</em>
</p>
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